How Leadership Training Can Help You Avoid a Manager Crash
Mar 24, 2025
One of the great ironies in the world of work is that managers are one of the most crucial roles in an organization, yet research shows that they are the least likely to have experienced some kind of leadership training. As the world continues to evolve in challenging and increasingly unpredictable ways, stress is on the rise for quite literally everyone. However, research from Wiley Workplace Intelligence shows that managers, the backbone of your organization, have the highest rates of severe, ongoing stress and that could spell trouble.
For many managers, experiencing high levels of stress is the new normal. Balancing their teams, who are reporting record levels of disconnect, disengagement, and burnout, with their own bosses and executive leadership teams who are constantly reacting to shifting headwinds and rapid evolution in the workplace, trying to support everyone’s disparate needs has become the exhausting norm, only exacerbating the problem.
As it becomes clear that this increase in stress, and instability in the world at large, is not going away any time soon, it is imperative that organizations do what they can to support their managers to help them avoid what is becoming known as the manager crash. To become exemplary leaders that make a positive impact at every level in your organization, your managers need to be equipped with the tools they need to lead through adversity.
Wiley Workplace Intelligence sought to understand what is causing this concerning trend and what kind of support would make a meaningful difference at this increasingly unstable time for organizations everywhere and our results can help you gain insight into what you can do to avoid a possible manager crash.
Managers Report Alarming Levels of Severe Stress
47% of people managers report severe stress
We surveyed 2,360 people and found that 47% of people managers are reporting severe levels of stress which has increased over the last six months for 31% of respondents. As we predicted at the start of 2025, the turbulent economy, ongoing AI integration, and workforce challenges have impacted many organizations as they navigate an evolving climate with fewer resources putting an enormous amount of pressure on their people.
As executive leaders must respond quickly to shifting headwinds, managers are often left with the job of leading their teams through significant amounts of uncertainty which is causing stress across the board. Managers are in a unique position of having to support and advocate for their increasingly burned-out teams, while implementing strategies from above, leaving them exhausted and overwhelmed as they often do this without the support they need to balance it all.
Our research found that the main causes of stress for managers are:
Increasing workloads
Challenges in time management
Staffing issues
Unclear expectations
Pressure
Communication challenges
Interestingly, 60% of our respondents shared that bureaucracy and tedious approval processes have a significant impact on their stress levels. As executive leaders reflect on how to support their managers through what is likely going to be a challenging year in the world of work, it is important to think through how The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® can provide a foundation from which to empower leaders. For example, if executive leaders Enable Others to Act, it could help mitigate the reported stress around bureaucracy and tedious approvals. When individuals are trusted to act without micromanagement, it improves morale and reduces stress.
Research Shows Major Gap in Leadership Training
Our research showed that only 56% of middle managers have reported receiving some kind of leadership training, which made them the least likely of all levels to have access to that kind of support. That number is alarming, meaning almost half of managers have not received any kind of formal training.
Managers have an enormous amount of influence on the culture, productivity, and engagement within your organization and it is important that they have the skills they need to lead effectively. From modeling the way to inspiring a shared vision, properly trained and supported managers can have an immense impact on morale, even in challenging times.
Management requires a unique combination of skills and relies heavily on an individual’s ability to work effectively with people, navigate conflict productively, and inspire their teams, while also focusing on how they can achieve results and meet the evolving needs of executive leadership. Offering leadership training will help avoid the manager crash and lead to increased productivity and engagement.
It is not uncommon for overstretched organizations to reduce these kinds of initiatives when faced with budget challenges, however, investing in your managers is one of the best investments you can make as their influence is so significant.
Support Your Managers and Encourage the Heart
Despite the alarming data around severe stress levels and the leadership training gap, the results of our research were not all bad news. Our respondents shared that while they anticipate an even further dive into ongoing or worsening stress over the next 3-6 months, they will experience a decrease in stress by this time next year.
It is unclear what exactly is driving that optimism (some research says optimism in times of extreme stress is an involuntary survival instinct), but it bodes well for organizations and provides an opportunity to invest in managers to improve the stress crisis and prevent a possible manager crash.
Surprisingly, we found that 78% of respondents are optimistic about their organization's future despite the current state of stress and uncertainty. This is great news for organizations as this points to sustained investment in organizations, even with the current levels of stress. That optimism provides a window of opportunity for organizations to invest in their managers through skill-building and leadership training. That reported silver lining may be because they see stress as temporary, they may see opportunities for advancement in the future, they feel a strong connection to their teams, or feel in alignment with the organization’s mission, all of which contribute to a feeling of hope for the future. Regardless of why, it’s up to you to invest in and support your managers to prevent a manager crash.
By taking meaningful steps to support your managers by providing the training they need to gain the tools to lead during these challenging times, you Encourage the Heart. After all, supporting leaders at all levels in your organizations can unlock extraordinary results.
Wiley’s suite of professional solutions provides a structure and common language to help empower entire organizations with the skills needed to get to the next level. From unlocking the power of leadership at every level with The Leadership Challenge®, building better teams with The Five Behaviors®, improving understanding to create engaged, collaborative, and adaptive cultures with Everything DiSC® on Catalyst™, or helping you make confident hiring decisions with PXT Select®, Wiley has innovative solutions that help make the workplace a better place.
Wiley Workplace Intelligence conducts in-depth research on key workplace issues by gathering insights from individual contributors, managers, and leaders. Wiley Workplace Intelligence then analyzes these findings to provide actionable solutions that are shared in our blog.